'Diversity Carnival' featuring inspiring workshops

By A Staff Reporter,Kathmandu, Aug. 10: On the occasion of International Youth Day, the Dalit Lives Matter Global Alliance will organise a 'Diversity Carnival' in which more than 150 young people from various communities, genders, and languages across the country will gather. It is informed that the celebration, to be held on Monday in Kathmandu, will feature inspiring interactions, workshops, and creative performances.

For the first time, Dr. Smriti Harijan, the first person from the Musahar community to become a doctor, will deliver a keynote speech sharing her perspectives. Nepali women’s national football team captain Anjila Tumbapo Subba and actor Najir Husen will present their thoughts in a panel discussion titled 'Dreams, Struggles, and Success.' Sunil Kumar Paswan, Under-Secretary of the Government of Nepal, and Meena Joshi, Vice-President of Rainbow Disability Nepal, will also join the panel to share perspectives from marginalised communities. 

According to the organisers, the celebration will also feature a musical performance by the all-women’s band 'Kasa' and violin player Kiran Nepali with his group, along with a live painting session where four artists will work together on a single canvas.

The Dalit Lives Matter Global Alliance stated that the Diversity Carnival has been organised to amplify marginalised voices and to celebrate Nepal’s diversity as a source of pride. Participants will be divided into groups to engage in in-depth discussions during workshops on topics such as social commentary and its impact, youth and opportunities, youth and holistic health, and climate issues. 

The conclusions and recommendations from these discussions will be submitted to the relevant authorities, said the Alliance’s president, Pradeep Pariyar. The organisers stated that participants will include Dalit, Madhesi, women, indigenous nationalities, Tharu, Muslim, persons with disabilities, and youths of diverse sexual and gender identities from across the country.

President Pariyar emphasised that young people need to speak up on issues of inclusion and practice inclusivity within themselves, and that this event will help foster such engagement.

The Dalit Lives Matter Global Alliance, established to build a generation of creative resistance against caste-based inequality, humiliation, and adversity, has been amplifying marginalised voices at both the national and international levels. The organisation was founded after the mass killing of Nawaraj Biswakarma and five others in Rukum West due to an inter-caste marriage. Since then, it has run various campaigns to hear and share youth perspectives, including the 'Caste Conversation' television programme, the 'March to Justice ' campaign, the 'Justice Summit 2025' for a socially and state-accountable justice system, among others.